Show Me a Good Time
by AutonomicRogue
Summary: Natasha Romanoff is used to being in the spotlight. She's used to taking whatever roles come her way, not wanting to take her success for granted, but after doing several back to back movies, she just needs a break. So what happens when one of her oldest friends and co-stars, Steve Rogers, runs into her in London and convinces her to take a break from the constant filming?
1. Chapter 1

Natasha Romanoff was one of Hollywood's most in-demand actresses. She'd been working in the industry since her pre-teen years, but it was only within the last five years that her career really took off. She was constantly getting cast in major films, always appearing on a different late-night talk show, doing interviews, and her face was plastered everywhere. So why she thought that she could go to a little pub in London and not be recognized, she didn't know.

She'd taken extra precautions, of course. She'd pulled her hair back, left most of her make-up off, and made sure to dress in something that wasn't too ostentatious, but also wasn't too laid back (which would still draw just as much attention to her). When she looked at herself in the mirror, she thought she looked almost unrecognizable. Her hair was even blonde at the moment for a role she was shooting just outside of London, which she assumed would attract less attention than her natural flame red hair.

"Ms. Romanoff," her bodyguard, Thor, called from just outside the door. Natasha quickly walked over, opening it up to greet him.

"Hi Thor," she said with a smile.

"Ms. Romanoff, are you sure that you don't want me to accompany you tonight?" He asked. He was always overly cautious when it came to her safety and insisted on going with her wherever she went.

"Yes Thor, I'm sure," she replied as she walked over to the nightstand where he small clutch purse was sat. When she turned back around to face him, he was frowning at her. She chuckled, "seriously, I can take care of myself. I'm just going for a couple of drinks and then I'll be back. Plus, it's a small pub Thor, the chances of someone noticing me there is pretty slim."

"What if I wait nearby, just in case you were to need me?" Natasha sighed as she pulled her black leather jacket on.

"No, it's your night off. You should go and be with Jane." She walked over and patted him on the chest, "I have your number and I promise I'll call if I need something." Natasha began to walk out of the room before turning back to face him, "but I won't need anything. So, go have fun." Thor began to protest, but Natasha wasn't having any of it, "goodnight Thor," she called as she closed the door behind her. As she left the building, she said goodnight to the doorman before walking to the edge of the street to hail a cab.

* * *

When she finally arrived at the pub, Natasha thanked the cab driver, quickly handing him her money, before sliding out of the backseat. The pub was small and looked kind of dingy from the outside, but it was perfect for Natasha. She walked in the door, counting a total of 8 people in the bar. Most of the people were there alone, but no one seemed to pay any attention to her as she walked over to the end seat at the bar. She noticed there was a man sitting in the booth just to the left of her, but he didn't pay her any attention, he just continued working on whatever he had in front of him.

"What can I get for you?" The bartender asked, only glancing at Natasha as he cleaned up a spot from a previous patron.

"Just a vodka neat, please," she replied.

The bartender nodded and quickly got to work making her drink. He brought it over and set it in front of her, before walking further down the bar to help another customer. Natasha inwardly sighed in relief that no one had noticed her, or if they had, they didn't seem to care. It was actually quite refreshing to be out in public and be seen as just another person going about their life, especially considering the chaos that usually followed her wherever she went.

It wasn't like Natasha wasn't used to her crazy life, she was, but that didn't mean that she didn't want to just relax and not worry about someone trying to snap a picture of her or go out for dinner without being swarmed with paparazzi. Natasha brought the glass up to her lips, taking a sip of the liquid, relishing in the slight burn that she felt in her throat. She hummed quietly at the taste and the warmth in the pit of her stomach before setting the glass back down in front of her. She reached over to her clutch and pulled her phone out of her purse, scanning through the messages on it. There was one message from Thor, asking her if she made it to the bar, and if she was doing okay. Natasha laughed quietly to herself before responding back to him. There were a couple messages that detailed her call instructions for Monday morning. As well as one message from Clint, her manager (and one of her best friends). Natasha opened up the message and a smile instantly spread across her face.

 _ **Are you crazy? A bar, in London, by yourself?**_ Natasha laughed.

 _ **I've got to live a little sometimes, Barton. Plus, I'm fine.**_ She sent the message out and took another drink, her phone buzzing only seconds later.

 _ **You could get hurt Tasha.**_ He replied.

Natasha rolled her eyes, _**I'm a big girl, I'm not going to get hurt.**_

 _ **If I have to plan your funeral, I'm making sure they bury you in that atrocious outfit you had to wear for that Victorian movie.**_

 _ **Love you too Barton. :P**_ She texted before putting her phone back into her purse.

Natasha finished off the rest of her drink before catching the bartender's attention to order another one. He delivered her drink and Natasha thanked him before he moved back down the bar. Natasha sat lost in thought for a few minutes, enjoying the silence and tranquility of the night. She would've remained that way too, if it hadn't been for the door to the pub swinging open violently and two rowdy guys walking in. Everyone's attention within the bar had turned toward the two men, the air becoming thick with irritation. Natasha rolled her eyes and turned her attention back to her drink. The men stumbled further into the pub, sitting down a few seats away from her. One of the guys turned to look at her, winking before turning back to his friend, bumping him with his shoulder, and pointing at Natasha.

 _Fuck,_ Natasha thought to herself as she shifted uncomfortably in her seat. She stared down at her glass, attempting to ignore them when she felt someone slide into the seat next to her.

"What's a pretty girl like you doing alone at a bar?" One of the men asked, his breath reeked of alcohol and he was far too close to her for comfort.

"Trying to enjoy my night, alone," she replied, sliding her chair further away from him.

"Oh, come on, gorgeous, we're not bad guys." He slid his chair closer to her once again, this time wrapping his arm around her.

She shrugged out of his hold, before turning to face him, "you think you can just touch people whenever you want? What part of 'I'm not interested,' don't you understand? Get lost."

"Dude!" The second man shouted, "you're Natasha Romanoff!"

"Oh my god, you are!" The other guy replied. "Well that's even more of a reason for you to come get with us."

Natasha scrunched up her face, "that's literally the last thing I want to do."

The guy reached up and grabbed her face in his hands, "you look like you could handle the both of us," he said with a laugh.

"I'm pretty sure she said she's not interested," a voice boomed from behind Natasha's back.

The guy scoffed, getting up from the seat he was sitting in and stalking over to the booth behind Natasha. "I'm pretty sure you weren't involved in this conversation," he yelled.

"Leave her alone," the man in the booth growled.

"Or what?" The guy said, "are you going to do something about it?" He reached out and jabbed the man in the chest. The man looked down at where his hand was and smiled before laughing. "Something funny?"

The man pushed himself out of the booth to stand up. He towered over the two smaller guys, he was pretty obviously ripped from the way that his button up shirt fell on his body. He had the sleeves of the shirt already rolled up and cuffed at his elbows and had paired the shirt with khakis. Natasha felt herself drooling over him, even though she was slightly annoyed that he hadn't let her handle the situation on her own. When he stepped out of the dim booth and into the light, however, she was snapped out of her trance. _Steve?_

The two guys had started backing up when they realized who the man in front of them was, "woah, sorry dude. We were just messing around," one of them stuttered.

"Get out," Steve snarled as he continuously walked towards them, pushing them towards the exit.

"Yeah, no problem man, we were thinking about leaving anyway," the other one said. He quickly grabbed onto his friend's shirt and the two of them ran out of the bar, the door slamming shut behind them.

Natasha looked down at her drink, unable to hide the smirk on her face. "I had that, you know?" She teased, looking up at him.

"I have no doubt about that," he replied, giving her a small smile, "but I couldn't stand to listen to them talk to you like that anymore."

"Well thank you." She smiled at him and he nodded before beginning to walk back over to his booth. "So, you're just going to save a girl and run?"

Steve turned back around to face her, "well, I just thought you wanted to be alone." Natasha shrugged and raised an eyebrow at him. Steve laughed, "alright then." He leaned over to the bartender and ordered another drink for him and another drink for her, not needing to ask what she was drinking because he already knew. When the bartender brought them back, Steve took them and gestured for Natasha to follow him to the booth he had been sitting in.

Natasha smiled, grabbing her purse off the counter and sliding into the booth across from him. Steve slid her drink over to her and she grabbed it, bringing it up to her lips for a quick drink before setting it back down on the table. "So, what is Steve Rogers doing in London?" she asked as she placed her elbow on the table and leaned her head against her hand. "I mean other than being my hero," she added with a wink.

"I could ask you the same thing," he replied with a laugh. Steve drew in a deep breath and leaned back against the booth, bringing his glass of whisky up to his lips, "you know, I really don't know what I'm doing here." Natasha furrowed her eyebrow together and he laughed a deep, hearty laugh that made Natasha's heart skip a beat. "You don't have to look so concerned, Nat. I just meant that I don't have a specific reason for being here. I just needed to get out of the states, I guess."

"I know what you mean."

"I don't know how long I'll be here, but it'll definitely be a while," he added with a shrug. Natasha nodded before Steve continued, "what are you doing out here?"

Natasha sighed, "I'm here for filming. I just got here on Friday, and we start shooting on Monday."

"Didn't you just get done filming another movie?" His eyebrows knitted together in concern.

Natasha slid her jacket off of her arms, revealing the olive-green tank top she wore underneath, "yeah."

"Nat," he said warily, "you're going to burn yourself out."

Natasha laughed and took another drink of her vodka, "so I've heard." She looked up from the table to meet his eyes, "oh come on Rogers, you know I hate it when you give me that face."

This time Steve laughed, the concern melting away from his features, "you always have."

Natasha smirked and raised her eyebrows at him, "yet you still do it."

"Well it usually works, doesn't it?" He challenged, raising an eyebrow back at her. Natasha rolled her eyes and looked away from him, "but seriously Natasha. You should be careful about overworking yourself. It's okay for you to say no to roles."

Natasha drew in a breath and crossed her arms on the table, "it just feels wrong to. I mean, we've worked for this for so long."

"Just because you don't take every role that's offered to you doesn't mean you aren't grateful," Steve replied. Steve reached over and grabbed her hand, "Nat, no one is going to think you're any less talented or that you haven't earned it because you turn down roles that aren't as appealing to you or because you need a break." Natasha pursed her lips together as she thought about what he said. "You're amazing. You don't need to prove that to anyone."

Natasha sat there for a moment longer as Steve searched her face for some sign of what she was thinking about. "I'll be right back," she said as she grabbed her phone out of her clutch and walked away from the table and into the bathroom. Steve smiled and shook his head to himself, _same ol' Nat._

* * *

Natasha quickly dialed Clint's number on her phone, "come on Barton, pick up," she whispered quietly as the phone rang.

"Hello?" Clint huffed as he answered the phone.

"We need to talk," Natasha said.

"Well, Tasha, I'm kind of up on the roof right now fixing something for Laura, can it wait?"

"No, not really," she replied quickly.

Clint set the tools he was using down on the roof, sitting himself down beside them. "Is everything okay?" He asked, she wasn't usually one to insist on talking if he was busy and it wasn't urgent.

"Yes, well… no," Natasha hesitated. "I'm fine, but I need you to do something for me."

"Okay," Clint replied, "what's up?"

"I want to pull out of this movie."

"What! Tasha are you serious?" Clint asked incredulously.

"Yes, I don't want to do it," she replied.

Clint blew out a deep breath and ran his hand through his hair, "Why do you want to pull out of the movie?"

Natasha leaned her back against the wall, looking at herself in the mirror and thinking about what Steve said. "I don't want to get burnt out Clint, and I already feel like I'm starting to get there. I just-I want a break. I want some time to myself."

"I get it Tasha. I'll make some calls and let them know."

Natasha breathed out a sigh of relief, "thanks Clint, you're the best."

"What kind of manager would I be if I wasn't looking out for my star," he replied with a chuckle. "So then are you coming back to L.A. immediately?"

Natasha bit on her bottom lip, she hadn't really thought very much about that part yet. _I don't know how long I'll be here, but it'll definitely be a while,_ Steve's words ran through her head and she smiled. Who better to show her how to live without constantly filming than Steve? They'd both gotten their breaks together, but Steve was far more laid back than she was. "You know what?" she said, "I think I'm going to stay here for a while."

Clint furrowed his eyebrows, surprised by her answer, "alright then. Be safe and let us know if you need anything. Keep us updated."

Natasha rolled her eyes, it was just like Clint to act like an overprotective dad, "I will," she replied before saying goodbye and hanging up.

* * *

Natasha walked back out to the booth, noticing Steve slide a small notebook back beside him on the booth when he saw her emerge from the bathroom.

"Everything alright?" He asked, giving her a sweet smile.

Natasha returned his smile as she slid into the booth, "yeah, everything's fine." She paused for a moment and took a drink of her drink. "I have a job for you," she said.

Steve's eyebrows knitted together as he looked at her, "that's sweet of you Nat, but I'm not really looking for work right now."

Natasha rolled her eyes, "I don't mean an actual job, dork."

"Okay," he replied, his expression unchanging.

"I quit the movie."

Shock washed over Steve's face, "you did what? Nat, I didn't mean that you should quit the movie immediately. I just-"

"Steve, I know. I quit because I wanted to. You were right. I'm overworking myself. I don't want to constantly be on a schedule and have every single minute of my life planned out," Natasha leaned back against the seat of her booth and folded her arms. "I just want to be able to have fun." Steve's lips began to twitch up at the corner. "Show me how to have fun," she finished with a smirk.

"That's the job?" He said with a laugh. "Help you have fun?"

"Help me have fun," she echoed, as she drank down the rest of her vodka.

Steve tilted his head at her slightly before a wide grin appeared on his face. He reached beside him and grabbed the satchel that had his notebook in it before standing up beside the table and reaching out a hand to her. Natasha narrowed her eyes at him, and he raised an eyebrow at her. She hesitated for a moment longer before grabbing his hand and allowing him to help her up. She quickly reached behind her and grabbed her purse and jacket as he went to pay for their drinks. Natasha caught up with him and he held his elbow out to her for wrap her arm around.

"Ready for an adventure?" Steve asked, wiggling his eyebrows at her.

"Absolutely," she replied as she hooked their arms together, following him out of the pub and into the bustling London night.

* * *

Author's Note: So, I don't really know where this fic came from. Originally, it was just going to be a one-shot, but it would have been suuuuuper long. I don't plan on this fic being as long as either of the other multi-chaptered fics I'm currently working on, but then again, we'll see how that goes.

Also, I plan on there being smut in this story eventually, which will be my first attempt at it, so just bear with me there haha.

Please review, favorite, and follow, and let me know if you guys are wanting to see more!


	2. Chapter 2

Natasha followed Steve through the streets of London, and despite the fact that the sidewalks were overrun with people going about their night, no one had noticed them or stopped them.

"Are you going to tell me where you're taking me?" Natasha laughed as they squeezed through a group of people. Steve was currently leading the way, pulling her behind him by the hand.

"Well that would ruin the surprise, wouldn't it?" He said, looking over his shoulder at her and giving her a boyish smile. Natasha felt her chest squeeze at the sight of it. She'd missed him. It had been so long since they were able to do anything together because of her crazy filming schedule, yet here they were, walking around the streets of London together after their paths happened to cross in that dingy little pub.

Steve took a sharp right, still pulling Natasha behind him. Natasha couldn't help but smile as she noticed that despite having ahold of her hand, he made sure to glance back behind him every so often to make sure that she was still keeping up with him. They walked a bit further before Steve finally veered out of the crowd, standing in front of a large building. "Here we are." He looked over at Natasha who had her eyebrows knitted together in confusion.

"An art museum?" She asked. "Isn't it closed?"

Steve smiled and grabbed his phone out of his pocket. He quickly texted someone before turning back to her and taking her hand again. "It's not when you know one of the curators," he replied. Natasha followed Steve around the back side of the museum to a small door by the loading dock.

"So, who works here?" Natasha leaned back against the railing beside the door and folded her arms across her chest. Admittedly, it was pretty cold, and she should've brought something heavier than her leather jacket, but she also didn't expect to be actually doing anything beyond getting a couple drinks tonight. She shivered almost imperceptibly, but Steve noticed, smiling gently as he stepped over toward her. He wrapped an arm around her and pulled her against him. Natasha smiled into his chest as she wrapped her arms around him inside his heavy brown leather coat, her heart fluttering at the gesture, but grateful for the extra warmth that he provided. She kept her head there for a few moments, taking in mixture of cinnamon and cedar from his cologne and bodywash, she nearly hummed at how pleasant he smelled. Natasha tilted her head up to look at Steve who looked down at her and smiled.

"I would've just given you my coat, but we'll be heading inside soon, so-"

"Steve," Natasha said with a laugh, "this is fine, thank you." Natasha buried her head back into Steve's chest and he laughed a little bit, before resting his head on top of hers.

"I missed you, you know?" Steve whispered as they stood there.

"I missed you too," Natasha replied with a sigh. Natasha pulled back to look at Steve's face, finding herself getting lost in his too blue eyes as she did.

When the door swung open, both Steve and Natasha jumped, the moment they were sharing getting interrupted.

"Hey punk," Bucky called from the door, "I can't believe you've been back in London for two whole days and are just now stopping by to see us."

Steve chuckled and released his hold on Natasha, walking forward to give Bucky a big hug. "Yeah well, I've been a little busy," he ribbed back.

Natasha stood back, smiling as she watched the two boys interact with one another. She knew Bucky pretty well, especially when her and Steve were around each other all the time, but it had been a while since the last time she'd seen him. She didn't even know that he was living in London.

"Who'd you bring with you?" Bucky asked, clapping Steve on the shoulder.

"A familiar face," Steve replied, stepping to the side to reveal Natasha standing behind him.

"Hey stranger," she said with a smile.

"Holy shit. Tash?" He laughed and walked forward, grabbing her in a bear hug. "What are you doing here?"

"Well, I was here to film a movie," she said as she pulled back from the hug before giving Steve a playful smirk, "but then I ran into an old friend at this little pub and somehow let him talk me into quitting the movie and going on an adventure with him."

"I didn't make you call Clint," he teased back. He brought his hand up to his chin, rubbing it in fake thought, "and come to think of it, I think I made it clear that you quitting this particular movie wasn't what I meant when we were talking about it." He folded his arms across his chest, pulling his jacket and his shirt tighter against his arms, as he raised an eyebrow challengingly at her.

"Tell me, Rogers, what's it like to be so full of shit all the time?" She quipped, raising an eyebrow back at him. It would have had its desired effect if it weren't for the shiver that coursed through her body when a small gust of wind blew through.

Bucky laughed, walking over to Steve again to playfully hit his shoulder, "good to see neither one of you has changed a bit. Come on in, it's freezing out here." Bucky walked in the door, disappearing in the darkness of the hallway, while Steve held the door and gestured for Natasha to walk inside first. Natasha fake curtsied at him before sliding past him and into the building. Steve rolled his eyes, but the smile on his face betrayed his fake irritation.

Natasha took a few steps inside before stopping, unable to see any further. She was just about to reach in her purse to grab her phone to use as a light when Steve's hand slid onto the small of her back. "Trust me?" He whispered into her ear, sending shivers down her spine.

She took a breath, collecting herself before answering him, "without a doubt."

She felt Steve smile against the side of her face as he gently put pressure against her back, urging her to move forward. Natasha was glad it was so dark in the hallway, otherwise it would be completely obvious just how red she was. She struggled to focus on where she was going rather than trying to keep her breathing even. "Take a right," Steve said, his voice low. Natasha hesitated for a moment, and Steve gently slid his hand down from her back to her hip, turning her with him before moving his hand back to its spot on her back. Steve smiled when he felt her tense slightly under his touch knowing that she was having the same internal battle he was. It was taking every bit of restraint that he had not to push her up against one of the walls in the hallway and show her _just_ how happy he was to see her. "And a left," he whispered again, going through the same motions as last time so she would feel more comfortable doing so.

"How long is this hallway?" Natasha asked, doing her best not to sound as breathless as she felt.

Steve chuckled, "not much further. Turn right here." As they made the right turn, Natasha saw light coming out from under what she could only assume was a door. She couldn't help the wave of relief that rushed over her, knowing that soon she would be able to walk for herself again, but she also didn't miss the pang of disappointment knowing that Steve wouldn't be this close to her anymore.

As they reached the end of the hallway, Steve put his hand on her shoulder to stop her before walking around her and opening up the door. Natasha squinted and blinked several times, trying to adjust to the change in lighting. She walked through the open door, giving Steve a coy smile as she passed him. Inside, Bucky was sitting on a stool next to a girl with brunette hair, who was standing over a painting. Another girl with blonde hair was standing across the room, using a magnifying glass to inspect a small ceramic pot of some kind.

"It's about time," Bucky called as they walked in, "I was beginning to think that this punk forgot the way here." He got a shit-eating grin on his face before adding, "or rather he didn't want to remember."

"Good to see you haven't changed a bit either, Barnes," Natasha teased, rolling her eyes at him.

Steve shut the door behind him before walking into the room, putting his hand on the small of Natasha's back once more to gently lead her over to where Bucky was sitting. "Natasha, this is Wanda Maximoff. Wanda, Natasha," he said, introducing the brunette woman standing next to Bucky.

"It's so nice to meet you!" Wanda chimed, turning around and hugging Natasha. Natasha was taken aback for a second but returned the hug. "Sorry, I realize you don't know me, but I feel like I already know you with how much these boys talk about you." Natasha raised her eyebrow looking at each of the boys, Bucky just shrugged, but when she looked at Steve, he was blushing.

He cleared his throat before gesturing over to the other woman in the room, "and this is Sharon Carter. Both Wanda and Sharon are curators for the museum."

Sharon looked up from the vase and gave Natasha a friendly wave, "it's nice to meet you, and I second Wanda's statement. I feel like I already know you from how much these guys are talking about you." She paused for a moment, before a larger smile spread across her face, "especially Steve."

"Ha ha, you guys are real funny, you know that?" Steve replied, sarcastically, the blush from his face spreading down to his neck.

Natasha decided not to tease Steve about it, deciding that she would get more information from him later instead. "So how did you all meet?" Natasha asked, grabbing one of the stools on the other side of Wanda.

"Oh, well, I met James first and then after we'd been dating a month or two, he introduced me to Steve," Wanda said, moving closer to Bucky and giving him a small kiss on the forehead.

"And I met Steve a few months after when Wanda and Bucky brought him along one night," Sharon added, walking over from where she was walking to join the others.

"You didn't tell me you had a girlfriend, Barnes." Natasha folded her arms across her chest and looked at him accusingly.

"Well, it's not like you ever answered my calls or texts," Bucky replied. Natasha felt a pang of guilt, she really had done a terrible job at staying in touch with them.

"I'm sorry, I've just been so-"

"busy," Bucky finished, shrugging his shoulders, "we get it Tash."

Steve noticed Natasha get upset. He stepped closer to her and put a hand on her shoulder, "but that's part of why you quit the movie, right? So you'll have more time for stuff like that," he said gently.

Natasha nodded and smiled up at him, "right."

"So, who's working tonight?" Steve asked as he shrugged his jacket off.

"Fury's here late finishing up some stuff in his office, and Coulson's on security." Wanda turned back and looked at her painting. "You should stop by Fury's office if you have a minute, he said that he wanted to talk to you about something if you have time."

"Okay," Steve replied. "I'll stop by as we walk through, if that's okay with you, Nat."

"Yeah, absolutely," she said as she stood up. She quickly her phone out of her purse before turning to face Steve.

"Alright, well we'll see you guys in a bit," Steve called as they walked toward the elevator.

"Remember that sex in a public place is illegal," Bucky yelled after them. Wanda slapped him on the shoulder, earning a muffled "ouch" from Bucky, and Steve flipped him off as the elevator doors closed.

* * *

"So," Natasha said, folding her arms and leaning back against the elevator, "you've been talking a lot about me to the girls?"

Steve shoved his hands in his pockets and dropped his head back to look up at the ceiling. "I knew you weren't going to let that go," he murmured. He rolled his neck over to look at her a smile painted firmly across his face. Natasha quirked an eyebrow at him, waiting for him to answer her. "I suppose you're just worth talking about." He shrugged slightly, the blush from earlier creeping back up onto his face.

Natasha pushed herself off the wall, moving to stand in front of him. She flirtatiously placed one of her hands on his chest and brought the other one up to his face, "don't look so worried about it, I'm flattered," she teased.

"Oh, are you?" He replied, stepping forward and backing her into the wall. Natasha's heart sped up as he towered over her, his eyes darkening as he stared down at her. Her eyes flicked down to his lips, which curled up into a smile as he noticed her eyes wander.

The elevator dinged signaling their arrival on the floor. Steve backed away, leaving Natasha standing in the elevator. "You coming?" He teased, looking back over his shoulder at her.

Natasha huffed in quiet frustration before stepping out of the elevator after Steve. "Who's this Fury guy we're going to see?" She asked.

"He's the director of the museum. Do you mind waiting out here while I go talk to him? I promise I'll try to hurry."

"Yeah, no problem. I'll just sit out here and wait for you," Natasha replied with a smile.

"You're the best." He squeezed her hand, giving her a reassuring smile before disappearing down a small hallway toward Fury's office.

* * *

Natasha sat back on one of the benches just outside of the hallway that Steve disappeared into. _Get it together Romanoff,_ she thought to herself. _You're driving yourself crazy thinking he's feeling the same._ Natasha sighed, leaning her head back against the wall. She had just closed her eyes when she felt her phone vibrate in her pocket. _Shit._

"Hey Thor," she answered.

"Lady Natasha! Where are you? Are you alright?" Thor shouted into the phone.

"Thor, I'm just fine. I ran into an old friend at the pub and we're out right now. I won't be back until late," she replied. _Or hopefully at all,_ she thought, her mind wandering for a moment.

"Okay Lady Natasha, I will let you enjoy your night. Please let me know if you need anything from me."

"Will do Thor, thank you!" Natasha hung up the phone and shoved it back into her pocket. Just as Natasha hung up, Steve came walking out of the hallway. "Hey, how'd it go? Everything okay?" She asked, standing up to meet him.

"Yeah everything's great," he replied with a wide grin on his face, "come on, there's something I want you to see." He placed his arm on the small of her back and ushered her forward. Natasha looked up at him, confusion coloring her face.

"Are you going to tell me what Fury wanted?" She asked as they walked further into the museum.

"I'm working on it," Steve replied with a laugh.

"Okay?"

"I thought you said you trust me?" Steve teased.

Natasha rolled her eyes, "I do, but that doesn't mean I don't question you sometimes."

"I'd be worried if you didn't." Steve gave her a smile, steering her towards one of the paintings hanging up on the wall. "Here," he said gently.

"A painting?" She asked.

"Look closely and tell me what you notice," he replied.

Natasha squinted slightly and leaned in. In the painting, the scenery was hilly, something that reminded her of her home just outside of Los Angeles, and in the middle was a girl sitting and watching the sunset. She had a tank top on and jean shorts. Her red hair was piled up into a bun on the top of her hair, and there was a small tattoo of a swan on the back of her neck. Natasha gasped, reaching up to her own neck to touch her tattoo.

"Who did you say painted this again?" she said breathlessly.

"I didn't."

Natasha leaned over to look at the name plaque that was nailed to the wall beside it.

 _Steven Rogers (American, born 1993)_

 _ **Adoration** (2012) Acrylic on Canvas_

"You-" Natasha started, whirling around to face Steve. His smile was wide and his eyes were shining. "Steve you did this? It's…wow."

"Do you like it?" He asked, hesitantly.

"I love it. I-is this me?" She asked, turning her attention back to the painting.

"Yeah, from the night before you left to film in Rome," he replied.

"I knew you sketched stuff, but I didn't know that you ever sketched me," she said incredulously, "or that those sketches ever turned into paintings."

Steve shrugged, as he looked down at her. "I had a gorgeous model." Natasha turned around and met his eyes before pushing herself up on her tiptoes and kissing his cheek near the corner of his mouth.

"It's amazing Steve, thank you," she whispered.

Steve hummed and brushed a piece of hair out her face, "come on, let's check out the rest of the museum." He grabbed onto her hand, giving it a small squeeze before leading her along.

* * *

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	3. Chapter 3

Steve sat on one of the benches watching as Natasha walked throughout the floor looking at all the different artwork. A smile found its way to his face as he watched her examine the different paintings, deep in thought. He pulled the satchel that was still hanging on his shoulder off and grabbed the sketchbook and pencil that was placed inside. Natasha was standing about 10 feet in front of him, bewitched by the painting that she was looking at. Steve quickly set to work, sketching out the scene in front of him. The pencil in his hand flew over the page, catching every curve of her body, every small wisp of hair illuminated by the light shining down on her and the painting, as well as the way her shadow created a painting of its own against the wall. He captured the way her hair fell down her back in gentle curls, and the slightly rigid way she stood, almost like a soldier, from years of ballet training. When he was pleased with the basic sketch he'd done, he gently shut the sketchbook and slid it back into his satchel. He smiled to himself when he realized that Natasha was so entranced by the artwork that she hadn't even noticed he'd been sketching.

"You about ready for stop number two?" He called to her across the gallery.

Natasha spun around from the painting she was looking at to face him, "we're going somewhere else?"

"I had a couple more places in mind for tonight. I promise we can come back here some other time," he said as he picked up his satchel and slung it over his shoulder.

Natasha walked over to him, her hands on her hips and a mischievous smirk on her face, "what makes you think there's going to be another time?" She teased.

He chuckled and took a step forward, towering over her as he looked down at her, "it's just a feeling I've got," he replied, his voice low. Natasha felt a chill run down her spine, followed by a rush of heat in her stomach.

"Well then," she said, doing her best to keep her voice level, "after you, Captain." She did a sweeping motion with her arm towards the elevator.

Steve raised his eyebrow at her as they began walking, "Captain?"

"Of the S.S. Adventure," she quipped. "You get it?"

Steve rolled his eyes, attempting to hide his amusement, "you know Nat, you're really lucky they write the jokes for you in all of those movies. If you had to write them yourself, you'd be out of a job."

Natasha scoffed as her mouth gaped open, "I'm hilarious, thank you very much." She gave him a light shove as they stepped into the elevator.

"You just keep telling yourself that," he teased. He gave her a playful wink as the doors to the elevator shut, taking them back downstairs to meet the others.

* * *

"You punks ready to go?" Bucky shouted as the elevator landed back on the curator floor.

"Yeah, just let me grab my jacket," Steve replied. He turned back to look at Natasha, his eyebrows knitted together. "Sorry, I just realized I never asked you if you were okay with Bucky and Wanda coming along for the next part."

Natasha rolled her eyes and placed a hand on his shoulder, "it's completely fine Steve. Plus, that means I can get some more juicy details from Wanda about the things you've said about me." She winked at him as she walked over to grab her purse from where it was sitting.

"Oh, I'd be _more_ than happy to share," Wanda replied, giving Steve a mischievous look. Steve pointed a finger at her, playfully warning Wanda, causing her to laugh.

"Are we embarrassing Steve? I want to join," Bucky chimed as he grabbed Wanda's coat out of the closet. He brought it over to her and helped her into it before giving her a kiss. "There ya go doll."

"I have to say, Barnes. I'm still not used to you having a girlfriend," Natasha laughed, watching the loved-up couple.

"Don't worry, I've know about them and been around them for 2 years now, and it still takes me off guard sometimes," Steve added. He walked over and extended his elbow out to Natasha, "shall we?" Natasha hooked her arm into his, the corners of her mouth upturned. "Trust me to walk you back out?" He whispered into her ear, a devilish grin on his face.

Natasha pretended to think about it for a moment, "I suppose," she said finally. Steve smile and turned back to wave goodbye to Sharon. Natasha also turned around to give her a small wave, "It was so nice to meet you!" She called as Steve walked them out.

Sharon laughed, "it was nice to meet you too! Take good care of that one, he needs all the help he can get!"

Bucky and Wanda finished saying goodbye to Sharon before following after them. "How long do you think it'll be before they get together?" Wanda asked as they walked through the dark corridor.

"I'd give them until the end of the night," Bucky replied with a laugh.

"That long, really?" Wanda raised her eyebrows in surprise. "I was going to give it until the end of bowling." Bucky laughed and opened up the car door for her to slide in. Steve and Natasha were already situated in the back seat.

"Alright," Bucky said as he started up the car, "who's ready for some bowling?"

* * *

Natasha sat back in one of the seats with Wanda the bowling alley laughing as they watched Steve and Bucky argue because Bucky thought that Steve stepped over the line as he was bowling.

"Have they always been like this?" Wanda asked Natasha, giggling as she watched the boys argued animatedly.

Natasha nodded her head, "oh yeah, if anything, this is actually tame for these two." She thought about it for a moment before continuing, "I once watched them argue for an hour when Steve beat Bucky at Mario Kart. Bucky thought that Steve cheated somehow. The only reason the argument ended was because I told them I would buy them lunch." Wanda was laughing uncontrollably at this point, and Natasha was smiling fondly at the memory. "It ended up costing me quite a bit, but it was worth it to stop their stupid fighting." She looked over at Steve, her smile growing wider, "but it's all in good fun. I don't think those two could ever actually be mad at each other if they tried."

Wanda nodded and turned her attention back to the boys. "James!" Wanda yelled before motioning for him to come over to her. Bucky squinted his eyes at Steve before the pair of them walked over to join the girls.

"Yeah doll?" He asked. Wanda pulled him down to where she could whisper into his ear. Bucky's eyes went wide listening to whatever it was that Wanda was saying to him. When she finished talking, Bucky stood up straight and cleared his throat, "you know what, punk? I'll just go ahead and let you have that one."

Natasha raised an eyebrow at him before looking back at Wanda. The girl winked at her before leaning over to whisper, "you have your tricks, I have mine." Natasha belted out a laugh as she gave Wanda a hi-five.

"You're up next, doll," Bucky helped her up and walked up with her to pick out her ball, leaving Steve and Natasha alone.

"I like Wanda," Natasha said. "She seems to be really good for Bucky."

"She is," Steve replied, taking the seat that was previously occupied by Wanda. "I don't think I've ever seen him so happy or in love before."

Natasha watched the two of them interact. Bucky wore a wide grin on his face as he cheered Wanda on. When she knocked down half of the pins on her first try, she jumped up in the air before turning around to give Bucky a big hug.

"And what about you, Rogers?" She asked, feeling her heart pull slightly. She wasn't sure that she really wanted an answer to her question. "Anyone special?" She turned to look at him as she gently twirled the bottle of beer in her hand.

Steve laughed as he reached forward to pick up his own bottle, "not at the moment, no."

"What about Sharon? She seemed to be interested." Natasha inwardly winced. _What the hell are you doing, Romanoff? Don't try to set him up with someone._

"Sharon? Nah. We went out on a date once a little while after I first met her, but it was just weird. I don't think of her like that," he responded. Natasha felt a wave of relief rush over her as she listened to him.

"What about you? Are you still seeing that Murdock guy?" Steve's face scrunched up in light disgust at the mention of Matt's name. Matt was a producer in the business that Natasha had dated briefly just after her career really took off.

"Ew, no. He turned out to be a _huge_ dick." Natasha looked back over at Steve to see a small smirk on his face. She playfully hit him on the arm, a smile donning her face, "yeah, yeah, yeah, I know. You told me so."

"Tash, it's your turn," Bucky called from the lane.

"Be right back," she said as she set her beer down. Steve watched as she sauntered up to grab the ball that she wanted. He was lost in though when Bucky clapped his arm on Steve's shoulder, causing him to jump.

"If your tongue hangs out of your mouth for much longer, I'm afraid it'll dry up," he teased. Steve rolled his eyes at Bucky before turning his attention back to Natasha. "Dude, just tell her how you feel. I know she feels the same."

"I don't know, Buck. I just got her back into my life, I don't want to do something to ruin it," Steve said warily.

"The sexual tension between you two is killing _me,_ and I _am_ getting some. Just, see how the rest of the night goes, and if it feels right, do something about it," he replied. He gave his shoulder a reassuring pat before walking away to go and get ready for his turn to bowl.

Natasha walked back over to where Steve was sitting and plopped herself down beside him, "So Cap, where are we going after this?"

Steve rolled his eyes at the nickname she'd give him. "You think we're going somewhere after this?" He tried to remain serious, watching as her face fell slightly, but the smile the crept its way onto his face betrayed him. "You'll just have to wait and see," he replied, giving her knee a small squeeze before getting up for his turn to bowl. As he walked away, he turned back to wink at her, causing her heart to flutter.

 _This man just might be the death of me,_ she thought to herself. Honestly, she might not mind it all that much.

* * *

Hi guys! Sorry for the late update, I've been feeling pretty under the weather today, so writing was kind of difficult. I hope you guys like it!

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	4. Chapter 4

Bucky glanced at his watch, "we'd better get to taking off. I've got a conference call early in the morning, and this one is about to fall asleep right here." Bucky shook his shoulder lightly, bouncing Wanda's head and making her grumble. She reluctantly pulled her head off of his shoulder and stood up to grab her things.

"That's alright man, thanks for coming along," Steve said as he stood up to give Bucky a hug.

"Anytime!" Bucky replied, returning the hug.

"Hey, we should all get together again, next weekend!" Wanda walked over to give Natasha a hug. "You guys can come to the gallery again and keep exploring while I finish up at work and then we can go do something after."

"How's that sound, Tash?" Bucky asked. Steve was staring at her, waiting to hear her answer. She hadn't told him that she was planning on staying in London for a while, so for all he knew, she could be leaving tomorrow.

"Hmmm, I don't know," she teased. "Be around you guys two times in a week? Sounds like trouble." She winked at Steve before laughing, "I think that sounds wonderful."

"Yay!" Wanda squealed, "oh, I'm so excited! You'll have to keep telling me stories about James when he was younger."

"As long as you keep telling me stories about Steve from the past few years," Natasha replied, giving her a big smile.

"Absolutely!"

"We can hear you, you know?" Bucky said, a disapproving look on his face.

"Oh, we know," Wanda responded with a wink.

Natasha walked over to Bucky and gave him a hug, "glad to have you back Tash," he whispered.

"Glad to be back," she replied.

"Do you guys want a ride to where you're going next?" Bucky asked. Natasha turned around to face Steve who looked at her for a moment before moving his gaze back to Bucky, shaking his head.

"Nah, we'll just grab a cab," he said. "No biggie."

"Alright punk, have a good night." Bucky wiggled his eyebrows suggestively at Steve, earning him an eye roll and a shake of the head.

"So, I take it this means you're staying for a while?" Steve asked as Bucky and Wanda walked out of the Bowling Alley.

"I don't know how long I'll be here, but it'll definitely be a while," she teased, using his own words from earlier in the night. Natasha sauntered over to Steve, wrapping her arm around his, and looking up at him expectantly.

Steve chuckled, "ready to go then?"

"Lead the way," she replied cheerfully.

* * *

Steve hailed a cab for the both of them but gave the cab driver the address before he allowed Natasha to get in so he could keep their destination a secret. The pair rode in near silence, though it wasn't uncomfortable, only speaking occasionally while they passed by different things. As they drove through Piccadilly Circus, Natasha's face was plastered to the window, pointing out the different things around them to Steve. A wide grin found it's way to Steve's face as he watched her awe at everything happening around them. He gently pulled out his sketchbook and pencil once more, flipped to a new page, and began sketching Natasha's amazement.

"Steve are you looking at all of this stuff?" She said, not pulling her head away from the window.

He pulled his eyes up from his sketchbook for a moment to look at her, at the way the street lights lit up her hair as they passed by them, the way he could see her reflection appear in the widow, her eyes wide with curiosity, and the pure happiness that she was experiencing. None of the scenery surrounding them could compare, "gorgeous, isn't it?"

"I can't believe I've been missing out on this," she whispered. Sure, she'd been in London plenty of times, but that was always for filming and business. Her face was always too far buried in her phone to stop and pay attention to the things that were happening around her. Clint had tried, more than once, to get her to relax and just enjoy the ride, but she felt like if she wasn't constantly doing something with her career that she was failing.

Steve put his sketchpad away just before they reached the Big Ben, sliding over closer to Natasha so he could look out the window with her. She turned to look at him for a moment, her face painted with the joy she was experiencing, and Steve was tempted to take out his sketchbook once more to permanently capture that look. He smiled back at her and brushed her hair behind her ear before turning his gaze back to the scenery in front of them. Natasha blushed slightly as she turned back as well, her heart suddenly beating faster in her chest. Just as they passed the Big Ben, Natasha noticed the lights of the London Eye not too far away.

Natasha turned back to face Steve, "are we going to the London Eye?" She was practically vibrating in excitement.

A small smile stretched across Steve's face as he looked at her, "possibly." Steve scooted back over into his seat, pulling out some money to give to the cab driver, just as they pulled up in front of the London Eye. Natasha immediately opened the door and stepped out of the car while Steve paid the driver. "Thank you," he said.

"She's special, kid. Keep her," the driver replied, giving him a warm smile.

"I'm trying," Steve replied, a smile spanning across his face as he looked up to meet Natasha's eyes on the other side of the cab. He tapped the top of the car as he walked around it to stand by Natasha. She immediately grabbed his hand and began dragging him over to the line of people that were waiting for their turn. "Have you ever been here before?" He asked as they stood in line.

"No," she replied, turning around to face him, "never really had the time." She shivered lightly as a breeze blew over them. Steve instinctively reached out and wrapped his arms around her, pulling her close to his body. She smiled against his chest, burying her head further into it, grateful for his warmth.

"Well, aren't you two lucky, you made it just in time," the ticket attendant said as she looked down at her computer. "You'll be the last ones for tonight." She glanced up and made eye contact with Steve, her face instantly changing in recognition, "oh my God, you're-you're-" Natasha pulled her head off of Steve's chest, peeking around where his jacket stuck out around her to look at the girl. She squealed, recognizing Natasha almost instantly, "and you're-you-"

Natasha was about to ask the girl not to say anything more, but Steve beat her to it. He gently shushed her, leaning in towards her to say something. She listened intently, her eyes going slightly wide before nodding her head vigorously. "I completely understand," she said. "I'll phone up to the front and let them know." He smiled a dazzling smile at her, nearly making her swoon as she walked to the back of the booth and grabbed a walkie-talkie talking quickly.

"What did you say to her?" Natasha asked as Steve turned back around to her.

He wrapped her in his arms once again before saying anything, "I just told her that we were trying to keep a low profile and we'd really appreciate it if she didn't say anything about it to anyone. I also asked if there might be a way that we could get a private capsule since we were the last ones in line and we really don't want to be recognized. The less people we're around, the better." He shrugged lightly as if it wasn't that big of a deal. "I also told her we'd sign a couple things for her when we came back down."

"You're just full of surprises, Steve Rogers," she said, looking up at him an adoring smile on her lips.

The girl came back and told Steve that everything was taken of, he quickly handed her his card to pay for their tickets before they were allowed further up the line. Natasha stayed huddled against Steve, who played with her hair, as they waited. When they finally got to the front of the line, he moved his hand down to the small of her back and helped her inside the capsule. The attendant closed the door for them and the wheel began turning, pulling them into the chilly London air.

Natasha was awestruck, she walked over to the edge of the capsule too look out the window, "I can't believe how amazing this is." Steve smiled as he walked up behind her, looking at the city below them over the top of her head. Natasha tilted her head back to look up at Steve, taking in his chiseled jaw, and bright blue eyes. Her heart thrummed in her chest. She reached back and grabbed Steve's hand, gently pulling it around her. Steve's heart skipped a beat, but he wrapped his other arm around her, pulling her back flush with his front. Steve leaned his head down and kissed the top of her head, inhaling the sweet smell her of shampoo as he did so.

"Thank you," Natasha whispered, spinning around in his arms to look up at him.

"For what?" He asked, looking down to meet her emerald green orbs that were staring up at him.

"For getting me to do this. For getting me to take a break. For-, just for being you."

Steve brushed his thumb over her face and gave her a bright smile, "you're very welcome."

Natasha felt the pull in her stomach, urging her to capture his lips in hers. Steve was having the same internal battle as she was. He wanted nothing more than to push her up against the glass in the capsule and smash his lips against hers, to wrap his hands around her waist. The trance was broken when Natasha turned in his arms back out to face the view, noticing how high up they were.

They had finally reached the top and the view was absolutely breathtaking. The both of them were silent as they took in the view, grateful for the presence of the other there as well. It wasn't until they started descending again that Steve spoke.

"I meant to ask you earlier, but what did you think of the museum?" He asked.

"I loved it! I'm really excited to go back next weekend," she replied. "But I already found my favorite piece." She had a smirk on her face when he leaned around to look at her.

"And what was that?" Steve asked, his lips turning up at the corners.

"Well, it was by this kind of unknown painter, Steven Rogers." She waved her hand dismissively, "you've probably never heard of him before."

Steve chuckled as he walked away from her, sitting down on the bench in the center of their capsule. "You're too kind," he teased. "Seriously though, what was your favorite?"

Natasha didn't move from where she was standing, "seriously, yours."

Steve scoffed, "Nat, you were in a room with paints from Vermeer, Remebrant, Van Gogh, and more, and you're telling me that my painting was your favorite?"

Natasha twirled around to look at him, folding her arms over her chest, "yes, I am." Steve still looked at her in disbelief, thinking she couldn't possibly have liked his the best. She shrugged her shoulders, "none of them are you, and none of them painted me." She raised her eyebrows at him, "okay?"

Steve felt his stomach do a flip listening to her talk about his painting. She really did love it. "Okay," he replied, a bright smile finding its way to his lips. Natasha nodded and turned around to face the glass. She was so wrapped up in her own thoughts and the beauty of London laid out before her, that she didn't notice Steve walk up behind her. He wrapped one arm around her, whispering her name softly. When she turned her head to look at him, he hooked a finger under her chin, tilting her head up towards his before leaning down and planting a gentle kiss on her lips. It took her off guard at first, but she quickly melted into it, twisting around to wrap her arms around his neck. The kiss was sweet and pure, none of the explicit thoughts that they had been feeling for one another coming through, but it was laced with love and tenderness. Steve finally pulled away from her, his hand coming up to brush through her hair.

"Thank you," he murmured against her lips.

"You're welcome," she breathed out.

Steve pulled his eyes away from Natasha, noticing that they were almost back to the bottom of the Eye.

"We'd better get ready to go, I've got one more place I want to take you tonight." He slid his hand along her arm as she go of his neck, grabbing onto her hand to give it a small squeeze. Before he could pull away, she laced their fingers together, giving him a small smile as she looked up at him. He leaned down and gave her forehead a quick kiss before walking them to the door of the capsule.

* * *

Oh boy. I wasn't planning on having them kiss yet, but it just kind of worked its way in there.

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	5. Chapter 5

Once off of the Eye, Steve and Natasha kept their promise to sign some things for the young girl who helped them out. They even stayed and talked with her for a few minutes before getting a cab to their next destination. Once inside the cab, Steve leaned forward and told the driver their destination before sliding back next to Natasha. She hadn't let go of his hand since she grabbed onto it when they were on the Eye. Steve turned to look at her, his eyes crinkled at the corners from the potency of the smile on his face. He rubbed his thumb over the back of her hand a couple of times before wiggling his hand free. Natasha frowned at him, confused by what he was doing. He laughed and brought his arm over his head to wrap it around her, pulling her close to him.

"So, I don't suppose I can convince you to tell me where we're going?" Natasha said as she cuddled up against his side.

"Not a chance, Romanoff," he replied, glancing down at her and smirking. Natasha giggled and leaned her head against his shoulder. The pair rode in a comfortable silence, neither one feeling the need to fill it, both of them enjoying the company of the other.

They pulled up in front of a large, strangely shaped building, and Steve paid the driver, thanking him before climbing out and walking around to Natasha.

"What is this place?" Natasha asked her eyebrows knitted together.

"You'll see," he replied, offering her his elbow. Natasha smiled up at him and gladly took his arm.

* * *

Steve and Natasha rode the elevator up to the top, stepping out into a large garden area surrounded by windows. There were quite a few people roaming about, but it didn't feel crowded. Natasha was in awe, the space laid out before them was covered in flowers and plants, climbing up and around the structures they were built on. The entire area was encased with glass, allowing for them to look out over London as they walked through the gardens, the night sky shining down on them the whole way. It was lit in a way that allowed for you to see everything, but still felt intimate, romantic even.

"Welcome to the Sky Garden, Nat," Steve whispered, leaning down by her ear.

Natasha's eyes were wide as she continued to take in everything around her, "this is-wow."

"Come on, let's go explore." He wrapped his hand around hers, gently pulling her behind him and into the garden. They walked lazily throughout the entire building, neither one saying much, just enjoying the company of the other. When they finally came across a bench, they sat down to take a break. "I thought about taking you to a park or something, but it's a little cold for that."

"This is perfect Steve, it's beautiful," Natasha replied, turning to give him a bright smile before looking back at everything in front of her. Steve looked over at her, taking in all of her features. Her eyes were bright and shining with excitement, the bottom of her ponytail was just brushing the back of her neck, and her cheeks were a subtle rosy pink. Natasha looked back at Steve, sensing his eyes on her and raised her eyebrows questioningly when she met his gaze. "What?" She asked, her cheeks lit up more as she looked at him.

"I like the blonde, I do, but the red is more you," he said, a hint of a smile playing at his lips.

"Well, I know it's been a while since you've had to change your appearance for a role, Rogers, but this kind of comes with the job," she teased.

He smirked, "what job? You don't have a job anymore." Natasha was about to open her mouth to say something sarcastic back, but instead thought about it for a moment before she pushed herself off of the bench and stood in front of him. She extended her hands to him and arched an expectant eyebrow. Steve narrowed his eyes but placed his hands in hers anyway, allowing her to begin pulling him up. "What are we doing?" He asked as she pulled him back towards the elevator.

"Nope, you wouldn't tell me, so I'm not going to tell you," Natasha replied, smirking.

Steve threw his head back, a hearty laugh falling from his lips, "alright then, lead the way Nat."

* * *

Thirty minutes later, Steve and Natasha were standing in the beauty section of Walmart, where Natasha was looking over the different shades of red hair dye. He watched as she frowned, biting her bottom lip in concentration as she compared the different shades. Steve suppressed a chuckle when for the third time that night, she began to reach toward a box before shaking her head and pulling her hand back.

"I just don't know which one I should pick," she groaned. She turned back to look at Steve who was leaned against a shelf, his arms crossed over his chest, and an amused expression on his face. "Help me," she whined, pushing out her bottom lip.

Steve smiled and squatted down beside her. He looked at the boxes for a moment before turning back to look at her. She watched as his eyes scanned over her skin, taking in the creamy color, and the smoothness of her cheeks, before coming up to her eyes. He stared into them for a minute, causing Natasha's heart to flutter in her chest, before turning back to the boxes and grabbing one. He extended it out to her, placing it gently in her hand.

"This one," he said. Natasha peeled her eyes away from him to look at the box he put in her hand. It was slightly darker than her natural color, more of a dark auburn, rather than her natural red.

"Why this one?" She asked. She turned the box over in her hands before standing up. Steve stood up as well, looking down at her.

"I think it'll look good on you. Plus, when it fades out, it'll go back to your natural color, but won't look super noticeable," Steve shrugged, offering her a small smile as he did.

Natasha folded her arms across her chest, raising an eyebrow at him, "Steve Rogers, actor, artist, and part time beautician."

Steve rolled his eyes, "I'm an artist. I work with color all the time, Nat."

Natasha laughed as she slid past him in the aisle, "well then, I suppose I know who to blame if it looks bad."

They walked together to the checkout line when Nat stopped short, looking down at the box in her hands. "Shit," she whispered. Steve furrowed his eyebrows, turning around to look at her. "It's going to stain everything in my hotel room. I didn't even think about that," she groaned. She dropped her head back against her shoulders, turning to return the box to its proper aisle.

"I know somewhere you can do it." Steve reached out and grabbed her arm.

"What?" She asked, "where?"

Steve smirked at her and reached his hand out to her, waiting for her to take it. Natasha rolled her eyes, a grin spreading over her face as she placed her hand in his. She glanced down at the ground for a moment before meeting his eyes, "lead the way."

* * *

Hey guys, thank you so much for being patient with me while I deal with family stuff. I appreciate all of your support & hope that I will be able to start posting regularly again here soon! Please review, favorite, and follow!


	6. Chapter 6

"Well, here we are," Steve said as they stood outside what Natasha could only assume was the apartment building that he was staying in. The large red brick building was located just outside of London, but still provided a nice view of the city and the constant hustle and bustle that came with it. Steve reached down and grabbed her hand lightly in his, giving her the chance to pull away if she was uncomfortable (she wasn't) before taking her inside the building. Once in the elevator, Steve punched in a passcode on the small keypad before pressing the button for the top floor of the building. Natasha furrowed her eyebrows and looked at him in confusion. "Added security and privacy," he explained with a shrug. Natasha nodded her head before turning her head up to look at the rising numbers as they ascended to his floor.

When the doors opened, Natasha's mouth dropped open. The entire floor was his apartment. Off to the left was a hall that she could only assume led to his bedroom and bathroom, but the rest of the area was completely open. A large couch and armchair sat in the middle of the room in front of a flat screen TV, his stacks of movies and records on either side of the brick fireplace the TV was hanging above. Straight to the right was the kitchen with dark oak cabinets and marble countertops. Floor to ceiling windows adorned the right side of the apartment but were currently covered up by curtains blocking the view.

"You just going to stand in the elevator all night or are you going to come in?" Steve whispered into her ear before stepping out into the apartment space. Natasha nodded, her eyes still flitting about the room, taking in all of the different features within the apartment. Everything was so _Steve._

"Steve, this is amazing," she gasped out as she walked into the space. She walked over to the couch and set her things down next to where he'd placed his satchel.

Steve practically _beamed_ back at her, his expression nearly giddy as he watched her awe while she looked around the room. He grabbed her hand, "I haven't even shown you my favorite part." He walked them over to the windows, drawing back the curtains to show the glow of London's lights, the Eye barely visible in the distance from the glow surrounding it. Natasha released his hand, taking another step forward, tentatively putting her hand on the glass. She didn't say anything, but she didn't have to. Steve knew exactly what she was thinking, it was the same thing he'd thought his first night in the apartment. There was something breathtaking about being just outside the beautiful chaos. Something intriguing about knowing that miles away people are all going about their separate but still intertwined lives. It was quiet poetic actually. He allowed her to look out the window for a few more moments before gently taking her hand once more and dragging her towards the hallway.

"If you liked that, you should see this." He walked them into a room, flipping on the light as soon as he stepped through the threshold. Natasha smiled as she looked around, he'd set it up as an art studio, easels and paints spread throughout the room, a small table in the corner where she assumed he did his sketching, and another large window like the ones in the living room. He drew back the curtains of this window to reveal almost complete darkness outside of this window, a stark contrast to the others they were just looking out of. He turned back to see Natasha's eyebrows knitted together and her nose crumpled up in confusion as she looked out it. Steve chuckled and stepped back beside her. "It's nearly nothing right now, but in the mornings, if you get up just before sunrise, you can see the glow it casts over the hills in the distance before it ever really makes an appearance. The sky changes from black to a deep purple, to a pink, and almost a red before the sun finally makes it over the crest." He walked over to a small stack of canvases, carefully picking up one before walking back over to her. "It's quite beautiful, really," he said as he handed the canvas over to her. Painted on it was the exact scene that he'd described moment before. Natasha felt her breath hitch as she took in the intricate details that he'd added throughout it.

When she was done looking over it, she handed it back to him and followed him out of the room and down the hall to the giant master bedroom. "I have the same view in here." He turned on the light, revealing a king size bed, a deep blue reading chair sitting in a nook in the corner, a small table stacked with books sitting beside it. Directly in front of the bed was a window matching all the others, the same curtains hanging on either side. "Most of the time I keep them closed if I don't plan on getting up and watching the sunrise, but sometimes it's nice to grab a cup of coffee, sit back in bed, and grab a good book to watch the day begin."

Steve turned around when he heard Natasha giggled. His lips turned up in a smile when he saw her shaking her head and laughing. "What?" He asked, laughing a bit too. What could he say? Her laugh was contagious.

"You're just not real," she giggled out. He tilted his head slightly, waiting for her to elaborate. She rolled her eyes at his confused expression. _Always so oblivious,_ she thought to herself. "You're basically every girl's dream. You act, you paint, you have a gorgeous apartment, you have excellent taste, and you like to watch the sunrise and sunset. Not to mention I know for a _fact_ that you can sing." She winked at him, earning a blush. Her smile faltered slightly as the next thought crossed her mind, "you could date anyone you want." Her voice was smaller than before, something that didn't go unnoticed by Steve as he looked at her, "so why don't you?"

Steve let out a sharp breath, shaking his head slightly as he brought his hand up to rub the back of his neck. "I guess I just haven't found the right partner yet," he offered, doing his best to conceal the storm of emotion inside of him. He kept her gaze, every part of him itching to sweep her up in a kiss like the one he gave her on the Eye but resisted it, instead offering her a small smile. He stepped closer to her, running both hands down alongside her arms as he spoke, "lets go get this dye in your hair, pop some popcorn, and put on shitty movies, just like old times." He offered her his boyish smile, his eyes practically dancing with memories of the nights, just like this one that they used to have.

Natasha returned his smile with a dazzling one of her own, "I think that sounds perfect," she said softly. _Absolutely perfect,_ she thought to herself, the irony of her words not lost on her as she allowed for him to lead the way back into the living room.

* * *

Author's Note: I was going to add more to this, but the chapter would've been _super_ long. So I just decided to split it up into two different sections. I hope you guys like it! It was a 2 a.m., can't sleep, fueled chapter. Ha!

Please favorite, follow, and review! :)


	7. Chapter 7

Author's Note: I am probably being overly cautious putting this little disclaimer in here, but I just want to be safe. This chapter deals a bit with having an emotionally abusive/manipulative relationship with a parent/guardian. It's nothing too crazy, but there is some description of the hurtful things that were said. If this is a trigger for you, I urge you to read with caution, or if it is too much of a trigger, please don't read. I would be happy to give you a synopsis if you aren't able to read this chapter because of that. That being said, I hope you guys enjoy! Please favorite, follow, and review!

* * *

"I did not!" Natasha insisted, a smile on her lips as her and Steve sat on the couch reminiscing about the past.

"Oh yes you did," Steve teased, squeezing her foot a little tighter as he massaged it. "It was at the after party of that TV movie that you did just as before began filming our first movie together. You brought me with you, got trashed, and spent the entire night trying to kiss me. I had to take care of your drunk ass and try to convince you to get into bed without me, and let me tell you, it was a task." He chuckled, shaking his head fondly at the memory.

"No, I didn't!" Natasha folded her arms across her chest, her cheeks pinking up in embarrassment.

"If you don't believe me, ask Bucky. He was there. He was helping me take care of you," He stopped for a moment before laughing as another memory came to his mind. "You even accidentally elbowed him in the face when you were getting up because you were trying to get over to me."

Natasha gasped, a mortified look coming over her face, "wait, you're telling me that I'm the one that was responsible for giving him that black eye that he had?" Steve nodded his head and Natasha groaned nearly dropping her head back against the arm of the couch before remembering the dye in her hair. "Why didn't you ever tell me this?" She complained, playfully hitting him on the arm.

Steve shrugged, "you were drunk, and it wasn't a big deal. You felt shitty enough the next day. You didn't need to know all of the embarrassing things you did, and let me tell you, they were pretty embarrassing things." He smirked at her as he put down one foot to pick up the other.

Natasha covered her face with her hands, clearly trying to hide her embarrassment. "Well, I suppose I owe you an even bigger thank you than I did before for you taking care of me and putting up with me trying to kiss you all night."

Steve laughed, "don't worry about it. I guess there were worse things you could've done," he winked at her teasingly before adding, "I was just glad you were okay."

"Well, I had you to take care of me, of course I was okay." Natasha offered him a sincere smile, letting out a satisfied hum as she closed her eyes.

"Always," he whispered out, giving her a meaningful look. She flitted open her eyes, sharing in his gaze for a moment before he tapped her legs. "How about some hot chocolate?" He asked, moving them off of his lap to stand up.

"Yes!" Natasha practically squealed in excitement. Steve chuckled as he walked into the kitchen to grab a couple of mugs and a pot to boil the water in. "Oh, if you have it, will you put-"

"A splash of Bailey's in?" He asked, holding up the bottle he'd just grabbed from the cabinet.

Natasha quirked an eyebrow at him, "you remember how I take my hot chocolate?"

Steve shook his head gently, a small smile perched upon his lips, "and your coffee, black with a whole shit load of sugar. And your sandwiches, you want turkey every time because you don't like ham unless it's roasted like at Thanksgiving or Christmas. And you'd prefer to be cold over being hot, which is why you sleep in tank tops and shorts year-round, even if it means piling 5 different blankets on yourself to keep you warm." He looked up at her and shrugged, "I remember everything about you, Nat. You're kind of a hard person to forget."

Natasha looked down at her hands and began picking at her nails, something he knows she does when she'd deep in thought. To anyone else, the half-smile on her face would've seemed genuine, like she was flattered that he remembered all of those things about her, but he could see the sadness sitting just behind her façade.

"Nat," he said. She looked up from where she was picking at her fingernails to meet his gaze. For only a moment, he could see the swarm of emotion floating around in her eyes before she schooled her expression. _Ever the actress,_ he thought to himself. "What's going on?"

Natasha shook her head and plastered another unconvincing smile on her face, "nothing, I'm just hanging out."

Steve tilted his head to look at her, obviously not believing her, "Nat, seriously what's going on?"

Natasha looked down at her hands again for a moment, as if she was trying to will herself to tell him what was bothering her. She opened her mouth to respond to him when the timer on her phone began ringing loudly, echoing throughout the spacious apartment. Natasha reached over and shut off the phone before pushing herself up off of the couch. "I should go wash this out of my hair."

Steve nodded and watched as she walked off toward the bathroom. He set the pot of water down on the burner going into his bedroom and pulling out an old t-shirt and a pair of shorts. He was just about to knock on the bathroom door when she swung it open looking back at the shower.

"Hey Steve, do you-" she stopped when she saw him standing there.

He held out the clothes and she furrowed her eyebrows at him. He raised his eyebrows, an amused smile dancing on his lips, "well, you're going to need something to change into after you get out of the shower, and I'm assuming you'd prefer to be comfortable." Natasha smiled and gratefully accepted the clothes. "You'd better hurry up though, hot chocolate tends to be better when it's actually hot." Natasha rolled her eyes, turning to shut the door on him, only stopping with it cracked ever so slightly and whispering out a quick "thanks" to him before shutting the door.

Steve sighed and ran his hands through his hair as he walked back into his bedroom. He couldn't ignore the tugging feeling in his stomach, the feeling like he was going to be split apart by the range of emotions he was feeling. He set to work on the buttons of his shirt, quickly undoing them before shrugging himself out of it. Reaching his arm up, he grabbed onto his undershirt at the nape of his neck, pulling it off of his body and tossing it unceremoniously into his reading chair in the corner of his room. He then walked over to the dresser and grabbed another old t-shirt and tossed it on before undoing the button on his khakis, changing them out for an old paint-stained pair of sweatpants.

* * *

Natasha stood looking at herself in the mirror. Her hair was back to its natural color, though slightly darker than she would normally do it. Steve was right though, it looked good on her. She ran the towel through her hair once more. Her eyes scanned over the way his baggy shirt fell on her body, one of the sleeves sliding off of her shoulder. The shorts weren't much better. What would've been normal length basketball shorts on him went down to about the middle of her shins. She couldn't help the smile that came to her face at the thought of wearing clothes quite similar to this all those years ago. It was hardly the first time that she'd decided to take a shower at his place, nor was it the first time that she'd needed to borrow some of his clothes. It almost felt natural to be wearing his baggy clothes once again. Plus, they were her absolute favorite clothes to sleep in. She even still has a few of his t-shirts that he'd let her borrow (which she quickly decided she was never giving back), even after being apart for a few years. She tucked the front of the shirt into the shorts to help some with the length before drawing in a deep breath and turning to leave the bathroom.

When she stepped out of the bathroom, she was greeted with the sweet smell of the hot chocolate, as well as the pleasant smell of wood burning in the fireplace. She hummed in delight as she walked out into the living room. Steve was just pouring the Bailey's into their drinks when he saw her. A wide grin spread across his face at the sight of her in his clothes.

"Oh yeah," he said, a mischievous smile finding its way to his lips, "I was definitely right about that red. You look great."

Natasha playfully rolled her eyes at him, trying to ignore the way that her heart fluttered a little at the compliment, "you know, modesty is more your style, Rogers."

He laughed and gestured for her to sit on the couch as he grabbed the whipped cream out of the fridge and topped off their drinks. He then grabbed the mugs and brought them over to where she was sitting on the couch. She gratefully took the mug out of his hands and blew gently on it before gingerly taking a sip.

"Taste alright?" He asked, bringing his own cup up to his lips. Natasha hummed and licked her lips, taking another small sip before setting the cup down on the side table next to her.

"Just like I remembered it," she replied, giving him a bright smile. "Your Ma still has you beat, but your hot chocolate is a pretty good second." She gave him a playfully shove on the arm that he gently returned.

"Hey, I'll take second place to my Ma. I'm pretty good, but I _am_ just the apprentice," he shook his head, a smile on his face as he set his drink on the table next to him.

"How's your Ma doing, by the way?"

"She's-" he stopped for a minute, drawing in a deep breath and furrowing his eyebrows slightly. "She's good. She started seeing this new guy and I don't really know how I feel about that, but she's happy, so that's all that really matters." He looked over at her and gave her a half smile, "she misses you a lot. She's always asking me how you're doing and stuff."

Natasha frowned slightly, "I've been meaning to call her, I just-she probably thinks I hate her."

"Nah, she knows you're busy," he started playing with the bottom of his sweatpants, trying to give himself something to do as he spoke. "She still keeps tabs on everything that you're doing. She'll make me take her to go see your movies when they come out, always pre-orders them as soon as they go on sale, reads all of those awful magazines whenever you have an interview in them or something. She's really proud of you, Nat." He glanced over at her, noticing tears sliding silently down her cheeks. "hey, hey, hey," he whispered, leaning over and pulling her into his arms, "it's okay."

"I'm sorry," she cried into his chest. He shushed her and began running his fingers through her mostly dried hair. "No, really Steve, I'm so sorry." She pulled away from him and looked up into his eyes. "I never meant to-I didn't want-," her body shook as a sob escaped her lips and Steve pulled her back in to him.

"You don't need to apologize, Nat. Really, it's okay." He rubbed his hand in soothing circles over her back as she twisted his shirt up into her fist. She cried heavily for a few more minutes before she finally started to regain her composure.

"I didn't want to leave," she croaked out after a few minutes. Steve looked down at her and brushed a chunk of hair around her ear. He didn't say anything for fear that she would clam up if he interrupted her. She pulled away slightly and looked up at him. "Ivan, he-" Steve bristled with anger when he heard that name.

Natasha's parents had died when she was quite young and her uncle, Ivan, had taken her in. Steve hated him. He hated how he was to her. He made her work non-stop, he pushed her to do projects that were too mature for her at the time, and he was really only interested in the money that she was bringing in. He treated her like she wasn't good for anything other than a paycheck. Steve tried talking his Ma into taking Natasha in more than once, and while his Ma was all for the idea, they really weren't in a position to suggest that she should be removed from his guardianship. Other than over-working her, there wasn't any evidence that he was physically harming her. Plus, despite the way that he treated her, Ivan _was_ her only connection to her family.

He drew in a deep breath, willing himself to stay calm and listen to what she had to say before getting worked up about everything. "The role, the one that I took when I left, I didn't want it. I wasn't interested in it. I didn't want to leave everyone, but Ivan… he told me that I had to take it. We got into an argument about it. He said that I was ungrateful, that I was a stupid child who was going to ruin her career because I was going to pass up on a good opportunity. He said…" she paused, looking up at Steve whose jaw was clinched in a hard line as he looked down at her. She shook her head and looked down at her hands in her lap as she spoke. "He said that I was foolish to want to pass up on the role for someone who didn't love me. That I was stupid to think that anyone would want me. That I was worthless," her voice cracked on the last word and Steve automatically pulled her back into his arms. He was confused by what she meant, but decided not to press, allowing for her to get out everything that she needed to say. She welcomed his embrace, taking in the smell of his cologne as he held her close. "He told me that I had two options, I could either take the role and that would be that, or if I declined the role, he would move us across the country and me not taking the role wouldn't matter because I still wouldn't be where I wanted to be." She drew in a shaky breath, tears still silently rolling down her cheeks. "I was only 16, almost 17, he was my guardian, he could do anything that he wanted. So, I took the role. I guess I thought that if I was going to be unhappy about leaving, I might as well try to make it better by doing something that I loved doing, but it didn't make it hurt any less." She looked up at him from under her tear-soaked lashes, his eyes welling up with tears as well.

"Nat, I-"

"Wait," she murmured, "please." Steve stopped and waited for her to continue. "I tried to keep in touch, I really did. Ivan had told me that I wasn't allowed to continue talking to you all, that if I didn't he would make sure that I regretted not listening to him. Do you remember the last time I talked to you?" Steve nodded his head, one of his unshed tears finally making its way down his face.

"You told me that I was your best friend. That you missed me and that you promised you would see me soon," he replied, his voice shaking with the effort it took not to cry or flip his coffee table in anger.

Natasha nodded against his chest, "he looked through my phone that night, found all of my texts with Bucky, and your Ma, but the ones with you were the ones that really set him off. He accused me of planning to run away, told me that I was ungrateful, promised me that if I ever did leave that he would hunt me down, promised that he would hurt you if I went to you." Steve drew in a shaky breath, his free hand clenching and unclenching behind her back. "He took my phone, deleted all of your numbers, all of the pictures that I had with you. He broke my phone, only buying me a new one so that he and my agent would be able to reach me and so that you all wouldn't have my new number. All of those other messages, the voicemails Bucky said that he left, I never got them. I thought about asking around to see if I could get your numbers from someone else, but I- I was too scared that he would do something to try to hurt you all if he found out." Her eyes welled with tears once more as a broken sob left her body, "I didn't know what to do, Steve."

Steve leaned down and kissed the top of her head, wrapping both arms tightly around her, "shhhh, Nat. It's okay. You didn't do anything wrong." He could feel the anger bubbling up inside him, but he pushed it down, knowing that she needed his support more than anything else.

"After I turned 18, I moved in with my agent, Clint, and his wife Laura. I thought about reaching out to you, but I was afraid you would be too mad at me to hear me out. I thought that you would hate me."

Steve kissed the top of her head again, running his fingers through her hair, "no Nat. I could never hate you. I'm just sorry that I wasn't able to be there for you."

Natasha sniffled and pulled away from his body. He brought his hands up and wiped away the tears that were still falling steadily from her eyes. "I'm sorry," she murmured.

"You have nothing to be sorry for," Steve whispered back, brushing a matted strand of hair behind her ear. Natasha gave him a weak smile and he offered one back. They sat in silence for a few moments, Steve still gently wiping away tears as they fell from her eyes.

"I have an idea," he said after she'd calmed down. She raised her eyebrows in curiosity but didn't say anything. He reached over and grabbed his phone from where it was placed on the coffee table. "How about we give my Ma a call?"

"You think she wants to talk to me?" Natasha asked, her voice was small, but a little smile had appeared on her face.

"I know she does," he replied. He held the phone out to her, waiting until she took it to pull her close to him again. He wrapped his arm around her and pulled her against his side. "You ready?" He asked, looking down at her. She tilted her head up to look at him and the smile that appeared on her face was one that he was sure he would do anything to see all of the time.


	8. Chapter 8

Natasha had spent the past 30 minutes on the phone with his Ma, but it didn't really bother him any. He had sat next to her, holding her close to him as the three of them chatted before he stepped away to give them some privacy. Steve grabbed his satchel, quietly told Natasha to come get him if he needed anything and went into his studio. He grinned as he listened to Natasha laugh at something his Ma said before pulling his sketchbook out of his bag and laying it on the table. He flipped through the pages, looking at his sketches of Natasha from earlier in the night. He couldn't help the flutter in his chest as he looked over them. _God_ he was glad to have her back. Truthfully, he hadn't stopped thinking about her since the last time that they'd talked with each other. He'd been so hurt when she'd stopped talking to him, but now, knowing the truth behind all of that, he only felt upset for her. _She must've felt so alone_ , he thought to himself. He picked up one of the pencils off of his desk, absent-mindedly tapping it on the desk as he thought about what Ivan had done. If he'd have known what Ivan was going to do, he would've taken her and ran. They could've run away. He would've taken her far away from him, hid them until she'd turned 18 and Ivan couldn't get near her anymore. If Ivan ever _did_ try to get to her again, he would- "shit," Steve murmured as he set down the pieces of the pencil he'd accidentally snapped in half.

Steve sighed as he picked a new pencil up off the desk. His feelings of Ivan aside, the most important thing was that Natasha was okay and she's there with him now. He flipped to a new page, pushing his anger at Ivan out of his mind. He could hear the gentle hum of Natasha's voice in the other room, still on the phone with his Ma. The pencil began moving effortlessly over the paper. He didn't have a particular scene in mind whenever he began, but quickly realized that the image before him was of his living room, the outline of Natasha's figure seated on the couch. He smiled to himself, as he realized what he was sketching. He had just finished perfecting the way her eyes dance and light up when she's truly carefree and laughing when there was a gentle knock on the door frame.

"Knock knock," Natasha said, leaning against the doorframe, a gentle smile on her face.

"Hey," He replied, a bright smile finding its way to his face. She looked relaxed and much happier than she was before, the tears once on her face long dried. "You done talking to Ma?"

"Yeah, she told me to tell you she would call back either tomorrow or later this week. She had to run to the grocery store."

"Alright." He closed his sketchbook and leaned back in his chair.

"What are you working on?" Natasha asked, reaching out toward the sketchbook.

"Uh, nothing," Steve stammered quickly folding his arms over the book and giving her a sheepish grin.

Natasha raised an eyebrow at him, "you know, Rogers, you're shit at lying. Really you would think that for an actor you would be better at it."

Steve laughed and shrugged his shoulders, "what can I say, it's a gift." Natasha rolled her eyes at him and placed herself on the edge of his desk. "Seriously though, you can't see it yet, it's not finished."

"It doesn't matter if it's finished Steve, I just want to see it," she argued, sticking out her bottom lip and fake pouting.

"Nope, no can do Nat, sorry." Natasha huffed out a breath. "I'll tell you what I _can_ do though," he pushed his seat back and stood up, placing himself in front of where she was perched on the edge of the desk. "I can pop some popcorn, queue up Netflix, and make some more hot cocoa since the last batch got cold. How's that sound?"

Natasha hummed, a smirk finding its way to her face. "You know the way to a girl's heart, Rogers."

* * *

"You've gotta toss it higher. You need more of an arc on it," Natasha laughed picking a piece of popcorn off where it landed on her lap.

"I _am_ putting an arc on it." Steve grabbed another piece of popcorn and tossing it in the air to himself, nearly knocking the bowl of popcorn off his lap.

Natasha shook her head reaching her hand into the bowl and grabbing a piece for herself, "no you're not. You just need to do it like this." She tossed the piece in the air and easily caught it, looking over at him and giving him a smirk. "See?"

"Have you always been this much of a show-off?" Steve ribbed.

Natasha huffed out a laugh, reaching in the bowl of popcorn and throwing a small handful at him. "Have you always been this competitive?"

Steve raised his eyebrows, a shit-eating grin finding its way to his face. "You're talking to the guy that once made himself sick trying to eat two large pizzas because someone *cough* you *cough*-"

"Got something stuck in your throat there? You okay buddy?" Natasha teased.

Steve playfully nudged her shoulder with his before continued, "-told me that I couldn't."

"Well I was right, wasn't I?" She challenged.

Steve narrowed his eyes playfully at her, "not the point."

Natasha hummed and grabbed the remote off the coffee table in front of them. "RomCom or Action?"

"Surprise me," he called as he went into the kitchen to grab a couple beers out of the fridge before returning to the couch with her.

"RomCom it is!" She quickly flipped through the movies before finding something that caught her eye (and featured as few people that they know as possible in it) and turning it on. Steve couldn't help the smile that appeared on his face as he watched her frown through the beginning of the movie, scrutinizing every choice that the actress had made in the way she portrayed her character. "Painful," she murmured to herself, "this is just painful."

Steve chuckled, "turn off the actress Nat, just sit back and enjoy it." Natasha groaned but settled further into his side and lacing her hand with his, her face still twisted in quiet displeasure.

The two of them settled into a peaceful quiet, both enjoying the company of each other as they sat and watched the movie together. Steve struggled to focus on the movie, finding his eyes drifting down to where Natasha's head was buried in his side. She looked so content, so peaceful and happy, a look that he was sure he hadn't seen on her face since before she'd gone away or was taken away, rather. He wasn't lying when he said his Ma had made him go see all her movies or that she would read those awful tabloids any time that Natasha had done an interview for them, but he had left out the part where he wanted to see all of that just as much as she did. He never complained about taking his Ma to the movies, but he would chastise her occasionally for reading those awful tabloids (though never maliciously, more out of exasperation). However, when she would discard the magazine on the table or the counter in the kitchen, he would always find himself flipping through them anxious to read about how she was doing, what she was working on, or even just to see her face. She always appeared happy, though he knew from experience that appearing happy in an interview didn't always mean you were. He'd put on his own brave face in interviews before, especially after Natasha had seemingly cut ties with him.

"Hey," Natasha said gently as she nudged Steve pulling him out of his thoughts. He blinked a few times realizing he had been staring at her as she smiled up at him. "Penny for your thoughts?"

Steve gave her a small smile, shaking his head lightly, "sorry, nothing. I just-I'm really glad you're here."

Natasha's smile turned softer as she looked up at him, her eyes shining, the flames from the fire dancing lighting across the green of her eyes. "I'm really glad I'm here too." He looked at her for a few more moments, gently squeezing her hand from where she'd laced it with his before turning his attention back on the TV. Natasha chewed on her bottom lip for a moment, her eyes still fixated on him before she spoke again, "hey Steve," she whispered.

He turned his attention back to her, his eyebrows lifted in silent question.

"When I was talking to your Ma earlier, she – well she said something that I don't think you ever told me, and I was just curious about it." She took in his face, noticing the way his forehead crinkled as he frowned down at her, clearly worried about what she was going to say. "It's nothing bad," she added, her fingers itching to smooth out the lines on his face. "I was just curious."

She paused for a few moments, the two of them each taking in the other's facial expressions before a smile broke out across Steve's face and a chuckle passed through his lips. "I can't really tell you about it if you don't tell me what she said, Nat."

"Oh, right." A shaky breath left Natasha's lips as she shook her head, silently chastising herself for getting so nervous about it. _It's Steve_ , she told herself as she looked up into his bright blue eyes. "Well, you remember when we were filming for our first movie together around Christmastime?" Steve nodded, silently watching as she worked through the story. "We'd only known each other a few months. You asked me what I was going to do for Christmas, and I told you that Ivan had gone to Russia to be with friends and left me behind, so I was just going to be by myself for Christmas." A small smile broke out on the edges of her lips as she continued, "but you told me that it was Christmastime, and no one should be alone for Christmas, so you invited me to come spend it with you, your Ma, Bucky, and his Mom."

"Yeah," he replied, smiling back at her. "You were super hesitant to, but I finally talked you into it."

"We hardly knew each other!" Natasha countered with a laugh. "Also, you hadn't even called to ask your Ma if she would be okay with it."

"Didn't matter," Steve replied with a shrug. "I knew she wouldn't mind, and when I _did_ ask her, she was super excited for you to come with."

"Anyway," Natasha rolled her eyes playfully at him. "You brought me with you and we went shopping and got presents for everyone. You and your Ma went shopping and bought presents for me-"

"and it became our tradition," he finished for her.

"Exactly."

Steve's eyebrows knitted together again as he looked down at her, "but I don't see what the question is?"

"Well, your Ma had brought it up because she was wondering if I would be joining for Christmas again this year."

Steve's heart leapt in his chest, "are you?"

Natasha drew in a deep breath and turned to face him more, "well, I told her that it depended on one big thing."

Steve waited for a moment for her to continue before cutting in, "which is?"

"Whether or not you want me there."

"I-Nat yes! Of course I want you there. Absolutely!" He stammered out.

Natasha laughed, a smile spreading across her face, "yeah, that's exactly what your Ma said, with a very accurate impression of you I might add." Steve blushed a little as Natasha continued. "Which leads to what your Ma said. She said, 'of course he wants you there. You're the first girl he ever brought home for Christmas, the only girl he's ever brought home for Christmas. He's always wanted you there.'"

Steve sighed and brought his free hand up to run through his hair, "uh yeah, that's-yeah- that's true."

Natasha's eyebrows furrowed together, "but didn't Peggy-"

Steve shook his head, "no."

"Why?"

"I don't know, I just never really thought about it. She had her family to do stuff with and I had mine, but you-you didn't have anyone. Even when you did, I wanted you there. It wouldn't have felt right if you weren't," Steve shrugged nonchalantly. Natasha smiled at him, shaking her head lightly. "What?" He asked.

Natasha stared at him for a moment before she leaned forward, her lips seeking his out. Steve quickly melted into the kiss, quickly becoming intoxicated by the feel of her lips. He wrapped his arms around her, pulling her tighter against him. Natasha moaned into his mouth, sending a shock through both of their systems. Steve grabbed her hips and pulled her up to straddle his lap. She broke away from him with a gasp, his lips instantly latching onto her neck. Natasha writhed for a moment, small moans escaping her as he continued his assault on her neck before pulling his face up to look at her. A smile threatened to appear on both of their faces as they took in the moment.

* * *

Author's Note: To be continued... ;)

Hi guys! Sorry for being away for so long. Everything has been super insane lately being in my last year of college. Don't worry, I haven't forgotten about this story or any of my others.


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